Chipotle hones loyalty to bring consumers back

Chipotle’s brand managers are trying everything to get people to rekindle their bygone obsessions with the fast-casual burrito pioneer.

Last month, consumers lined up for free burritos. This month, there’s a new marketing game at play—the loyalty program.

Perhaps more regular free food and increased customer appreciation/attention will do the trick and help slumping sales—Chipotle posted its first quarterly loss in the wake of last year’s highly publicized E. coli breakouts. It showed a net loss of $26 million in the first quarter, but perhaps this was the expected outcome after enticing consumers with free product.